'We fear Tahir Elçi case will turn into unsolved murder'

Diyarbak?r Bar Head Tahir Elçi's murder could "turn into an unsolved murder," said Diyarbak?r Bar lawyer Mahsuni Karaman, adding that the case's footages should be examined by "independent referees."

Karaman told Do?an News Agency (DHA) that the his team was not certain about whether the exact moment of Elçi's shooting was purposefully cut in the footages; however, an investigation and data collection conducted by the police in a case involving police officers themselves "casted doubt, right of the bat, on the efficacy of the upcoming legal processes." 

The Diyarbak?r Bar Commission, including Karaman, has underlined "the exact moment of the shooting, which lasted 17 seconds, that killed Tahir Elçi in Diyarbak?r on Nov. 28 was not in two police footages" in a statement this week. The commission has stated "the possibility of interference" in the tapes.

The police officer who owns the footage has testified that "he crouched down while taking the footage during the most critical time and after having noticed the recording was stopped, he restarted taking the footage," Karaman said.

The lawyer added the comission had noticed a "slight interruption" in the footage. "We do not say the footage was cut for sure; we think it casts doubt as the recording stops right at the moment of the shooting," Karaman said, adding that "the nature of law demands us to be suspecting."

But what is the importance of this 17-second-long footage?

Diyarbak?r Bar lawyer reiterated that during the event, several reporters had turned their cameras in order to show militants running towards them, with Elçi "standing two to three meters behind the cameras." 

"Footage shows militants passing near the shooting scene, then we find Elçi's...